The other day at Jones Beach was quite slow migrant-wise, but the shorebird variety on the beach was pleasing. Among the many Sanderlings were my first-of-the-season Dunlin (over forty) and a surprising 15+ Western Sandpipers, just on that small part of the beach I covered. Definitely the most WESA's there I had ever seen, shattering the recored of 3 I made a month ago. Also, there were no other peep species in the area.
The Western that wasn't, however, was on the jetty, I was watching it and it semed to be hiding behind a rock, occasionally peering over and looking in the direction where its buddy was feeding. Was this a formerly-undocumented record of sandpipers playing? Well I came about my sense shortly when I noticed a Peregrine Falcon patrolling the area. Suddenly it went into attack mode and began flying very swiftly down the length of the jetty at me. The sandpipers panicked and flew off the jetty where the falcon followed, veering off a few yards in front of me. I couldn't see what happened as the birds collided right between the sun and I, but both sandpipers came back in one piece, and the disappointed falcon flew west down the beach.
The Western that wasn't, however, was on the jetty, I was watching it and it semed to be hiding behind a rock, occasionally peering over and looking in the direction where its buddy was feeding. Was this a formerly-undocumented record of sandpipers playing? Well I came about my sense shortly when I noticed a Peregrine Falcon patrolling the area. Suddenly it went into attack mode and began flying very swiftly down the length of the jetty at me. The sandpipers panicked and flew off the jetty where the falcon followed, veering off a few yards in front of me. I couldn't see what happened as the birds collided right between the sun and I, but both sandpipers came back in one piece, and the disappointed falcon flew west down the beach.
